Newport man ordered to seek help

June 28, 2014

A Newport man who stole his little sister's prescription pills was sentenced Friday in Washington County Common Pleas Court to take the first bed available at the SEPTA Correctional Facility and seek help for his substance abuse problem.

Corey P. Pryor, 20, of 90 Mitchell Drive, was sentenced on two fourth-degree felonies-one for safecracking and one for theft of a dangerous drug.

In October and again in February, Pryor reportedly broke into his mother's nearby home. During the first break-in, he pried open a medication lock box in the home and stole 28 of his younger sister's Adderall pills. He was originally indicted on an additional two third-degree felony burglary charges, but those were dropped when Pryor pleaded guilty in May to the fourth-degree felonies.

"I can concur that he does need to get the treatment. I'm not sure that SEPTA has that initially available to him, but maybe they can segue into some treatment for him," said Brum.

Pryor has a minimal juvenile record and no adult record, noted Washington County Common Pleas Court Judge Ed Lane as he read through Pryor's pre-sentence investigation report.

However, that made it even more concerning that Pryor was deemed to be at a high risk for recidivism, said Lane.

"You're at a high risk for recidivism. It's rare I see that on this (Ohio Risk Assessment System report), and it's even rarer considering the fact that you don't have a prior record. The fact that you're a high risk indicates that you do have a very serious drug problem," he said.

Having spent 107 days-though not consecutively-in jail on the charges, Pryor should be off of drugs currently, noted Lane.

Lane ordered Pryor to stay in the Washington County Jail until a bed becomes available at SEPTA. After completing SEPTA, Pryor will be required to join the court's "Thinking For A Change" program and attend counseling at L&P Services. Pryor will be on community control for the next five years, said Lane.

Should Pryor fail to successfully complete the SEPTA program or violate community control, he will be sent to prison for the maximum term, said Lane. Because the two charges are allied, the maximum prison term for one of the felonies-18 months-would be imposed, he said.